AUTHOR'S NOTE(S): I'm just uploading all my work at once, and soon I'll be working in intervals.
Disclaimers: I do not own ANY of the characters in this story.
Section C: Hidden Village of Konoha
Refreshments were at hand, and Gatorade was definitely on the menu. It was a basketball player's necessity! Who played basketball without Gatorade?
"THE GATORADE IS HERE!" sang a large green-suited man. He burst through the double doors of the basketball court carrying two huge coolers of drinks on his shoulders. A sweaty and tired out team of adults came his way.
"Not Gatorade again, Gai?" sighed Asuma, as he snatched a bottle from the cooler as Gai dumped it on the ground, "Why can't we have something normal, like water?"
"Drink to your youth!" Gai cheered, grabbing a large blue bottle, "victory will definitely ensue."
Everybody seemed to not hear him, and just grabbed their share of drinks. The basketball sat out in its loneliness on the court, until an intruder snatched it up.
"Naruto," Kakashi called without turning around, "put it down. That's our tenth ball in the past three days."
The blonde haired boy was holding the ball to his stomach as he reclined in the basketball hoop. He spun it on his finger and attempted to practice his "Rasengan" tactic with it. If you do not know what "Rasengan" is, it is a technique that gathers visible chakra in a perfect sphere and rotates at high speed to use as a weapon similar to Sasuke's "Chidori". But the basketball was much bigger than the normal tennis-ball sized "Rasengan", and usually ended up imploding the ball.
"Don't worry! I won't lose it or anything," he said, "I just wanna play with it!"
"That's kind of what I was fearing." Kakashi muttered under his breath.
"Shouldn't you be with your own teammates?" asked Kurenai politely. Her normally blazing red eyes were hazy with all the grueling practice.
Naruto just shrugged, "I guess, but they're still on lunch break."
The food that was passed around was Subway sandwiches. At least Gai had the sensibility to order something of taste and value at the same time. The adults were somewhat chattier now, since they had gotten sugar into their system.
"I wonder who our opponents are?" wondered Genma, fiddling with the toothpick in his mouth, "I hear they aren't ninja's in any way."
"I highly doubt that," countered Iruka, "everybody has a bit of ninja in them somehow."
"You have to remember that not everybody in the world is capable of living a ninja-style lifestyle, nor do they have the qualifications of one," reminded Kakashi, discretely slipping a straw into his mask to enable him to drink, "there are people who are very different from us."
"I still can't believe it." sighed Iruka, chomping on his Italian BLT.
The other chuunin's such as Izumo, Kotetsu and Genma were conversing in their own little conversations, while the jounin's Kakashi, Gai, Kurenai and Asuma chatted in their own. Iruka happened to be the only chuunin that conversed freely in both groups. It was always good to be diverse.
Naruto was starting to get bored with his Rasengan practice, and attempted to swish the ball in the hoop across the court. It thudded off the corner of the backboard in a rebound, and hit Kakashi in the back of the head.
"…Naruto," he said slowly, wiping his face. The sandwich had smooshed into his face, as he was trying to carefully eat it without removing his mask. Thanks to Naruto, he now had to use extra precious energy in going back home, and so that he wouldn't inhale smells of meatball while playing, wash his face mask. And we all know how much Kakashi despises washing his own clothing, if at all. As if ninja's really have the time to wash their clothes.
"Ehehehehe!" snickered Naruto uneasily, getting out of the basketball hoop, "well, uh, I've got a soccer game to go to! See you later, Kakashi-sensei!"
Section D: Japan
"I hate basketball!" whined Ken, attempting to kick the striped ball around.
Omi stole it from under his feet and passed it to Nagi, who didn't budge to receive it. Wincing, Omi turned his face, half-expecting it to smash into the younger boy's porcelain face. But he already knew that Nagi had grasped it with his telekinetic mind.
"Don't make me anticipate like that," sighed Omi in relief, "it scares me!"
"I'm sorry." came the quiet reply.
Bradley and Schuldich were conversing in their telepathic way, while playing the game at the same time. Surprisingly, the two opposing assassination forces (Weiss & Schwarz) had somehow come to a mutual friendship. The depths of the reasons why, are - and will always - be unfathomable, so there is really no use in explaining.
Where was Farfarello?
"O, I hope…!" chuckled Farfarello, hanging upside-down from one of the hoops, "that Omi's fear hurts the Lord…,"
"Look you psycho, get down from there before ya break it." snapped Youji, who was reclining on a nearby bench.
As mutual as they were, it was still difficult to handle Farfarello when he started getting into the hurting-God phase. You'd think he would've gotten over it by now.
Ran was waiting patiently on the court, as Nagi passed it to his other teammate, Shuldich, who was all the way on the other side of the court and blocked by Ran's body. It seemed like a foolish idea to the non-telepathic, but Schuldich caught it easily. Nagi had passed it telepathically straight into Schuldich's arms, and Schuldich was still chatting with Brad as he was catching. Maybe Brad missed that pass.
"What's wrong, Crawfish?" teased Schuldich, "your insight fail on your already?"
"Don't name me after sea animals." warned Brad, trailing close on the German's heels.
Shuldich decided to run down the court like a normal human being, and bypassed Ran and Youji (who got up to join the game). Farfarello wasn't even helping the team, and was just uselessly guarding the basketball hoop. Brad tried to steal from Schuldich, but stopped dead in his tracks. Before Shuldich could stop himself, he passed it to Omi, who received a faceful of Brad's elbow.
"Tch," sneered Schuldich, "I guess you saw that one!"
Brad returned the sneer as he made his way down the court and to their designated hoop. Unfortunately, Farfarello had become quite comfortable, and was now crawling all over the backboard. Youji, who had yelled at him earlier, became quite frustrated at the insane patient.
"If you break that AGAIN, I swear I'll kill you!" threatened Youji, shaking his fist at him in vain.
Farfarello took no heed, and jumped for Brad like a wild animal. Brad moved aside quickly, as Farfarello landed on all four. Jumping up, he made a shot, and the rest of the team members gawked as the ball sailed closer, closer, closer…
My pathetic attempt at a "cliffhanger", woo hoo hoo hooo. I'm just so clever. Please review 3